America's fracking boom founders as global prices and demand collapse

The shale industry made the US a major producer once again. But Covid-19 looks likely to ruin many prospectorsCoronavirus - latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe US shale industry was forecast to deliver record high oil production this year. Only a few months ago the Permian basin was expected to increase its oil output to a new high of 4.8 million barrels per day, on the way to spurring the entire US market to a record daily output rate of 9 million bpd in 2020.The Permian, North America's largest shale basin, has been one of the biggest drivers of a shale oil boom that helped make the United States the biggest oil producer in the world, ahead of Saudi Arabia and Russia. Continue reading...